n.
Pronunciation: ' mä-d( ə -)r ə t
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin moderatus, from past participle of moderare to moderate; akin to Latin modus measure
Date: 15th century
1 a : avoiding extremes of behavior or expression : observing reasonable limits <a moderate drinker> b : CALM , TEMPERATE
2 a : tending toward the mean or average amount or dimension b : having average or less than average quality : MEDIOCRE
3 : professing or characterized by political or social beliefs that are not extreme
4 : limited in scope or effect
5 : not expensive : reasonable or low in price
6 of a color : of medium lightness and medium chroma
– mod · er · ate · ly adverb
– mod · er · ate · ness noun